Patterning mechanism for circular knitting machines



0a. 22, 1935. E W L T r AL 2,018,165

ISM FOR CIRCUL AR KNITTING MACHINES PATTERNING MECHAN Filed March '7, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 22, 1935. E. WILDT ET AL PATTERNING MECHANISM FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES Filed March '7, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 OctQZZ, 1935 E. WILDT ET AL PATTERNING MECHANISM FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES 7 Filed March '7, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Oct. 22, 1935. E, w AL 2,018,165.

PATT ER'NING MECHANISM FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES Filed March '7, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 H III" a '10, 21\

INVENI 'OIB ZJM Oct. 22, 1935. E. WILDT ET AL 2,013,165

PATTERNING MECHANISM FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES Filed March 7, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Oct. 22, 1935 UNITED STATES PATTEBNING MECHANISM FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES Edwin Wildt and Henry Harold Holmes, Leicester, England, assignors to Wildt and Company Limited, Leicester, England, a British company Application March 7, 1930, Serial No. 433,987

In Great 12 Claim.

This invention consists in improvements in or relating to knitting machines knitting wale or embroidery threads along with a ground thread. The invention has particular reference to patterning by vertical stripes or by designs produced by vertical striping means.

Subject matter is claimed here which was formerly claimed in our co-pending application Serial No. 341,874, filed February 23, 1929. Also certain related features are described and claimed in our co-pending application Serial No. 433,938, filed of even date herewith.

The invention is illustrated in its application to circular knitting machines and does not apply to flat frame machines.

The type of patterning mechanism contemplated by the present invention (which will be referred to herein and in the appended claims, as of the type described) comprises a plurality of independent thread-guides, each of which controls a separate and distinct embroidery thread or threads. The thread-guides are actuated to supply their respective embroidery threads each to a separate and distinct needle or to a separate and distinct small group of, say, two needles. It is preferred that each thread be supplied to a single needle wherever striping is to occur. Where reference is made herein to the allocation of a thread-guide to a needle, it is to be understood that such a thread-guide may be allocated to a group of two or more needles supplied by any one threadguide.

In such mechanisms hitherto, where the vertically produced pattern has been discontinuous on the front of the knitted fabric, for example, where vertical rows of spaced diamond or other shaped patterns are to be produced, loose threads have occurred at the back of the fabric between the end of one pattern-element and the commencement of the next immediately following it in the length of the fabric. An object of the invention is to avoid the formation of such loose threads particularly in non-ribbed fabric.

The invention, however, is not limited to nonribbed fabric as it may be equally well applied to ribbed fabric. The term embroidery threads is applied to the individual threads fed to the needles by the thread-guides and may be of the same color as that of the ground-thread, although, in practice, it ,is generally of a different color.

For the production of knitted fabric, hose or half-hose, wherein vertical stripes or other patterns are knitted by striping mechanism of the type described, the present invention involves Britain March 16, 1928 the method which consists of knitting embroidery threads into the fabric on each course by passing the embroidery thread either into the hook of the needle or around the needle without entering the hook, so that the embroidery thread 5 appears either at the front or at the back without loose threads. That is to say, the embroidery threads are interlinked whether at the front or at the back of the fabric with adjacent loops of the groundor non-patterning thread.

According to the present invention, patterning mechanism of the type described comprises in combination a plurality of thread-guides, one for each embroidery thread to be used, threadguide actuating means which, on every course, moves the thread-guide through a complete feeding movement, and means for adjusting the height to which the needles are moved relatively to their thread-guides, whereby the embroidery thread is taken either into the hook of the needle or, alternatively, is taken round the needle without entering the hook.

J acquard-actuated selecting mechanism is preferably employed for determining the relative adjustment between the thread-guides and 25 the needles.

Although in nonribbed fabric the embroidery threads which are passed round the needles without entering the hooks will actually show on the back of the fabric, they will not show in the 30 same manner in ribbed fabric. They will, in fact, be more or less buried in the thickness of the knitting but their occurrence in this position in ribbed fabric is to be understood as included in the above description (and its equivalent in 86 the appended claims) where it is stated that the embroidery threads appear at the back without loose threads".

The term "hook or equivalent expression used throughout the specification and claims is intended to mean the hooked end of the needle whether of the latch or bearded type.

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood, some preferred constructions of patterning mechanism will now be described with the aid of the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows, on an enlarged scale, a section of knitted web with one embroidery thread inm dicated as knitted either to the front or the back of thefabric in accordance with the present invention,

Figures 2 to 5, respectively, illustrate the successive steps in the action of knitting the em- 55 broidery thread to the front of the fabric, with the use of latch-needles,

Figures 6 to 9 illustrate, respectively, corresponding steps in the operation of knitting an embroidery thread to the back of the fabric,

Figures 10 and 11 correspond respectively to Figures 2 and 3, but with the use of bearded needles,

, Figures 12 and 13 correspond respectively to Figures 6 and 7 but with bearded needles, as shown in Figures 10 and 11,

Figure 14 is an elevation, partly in section, of a circular knitting machine having a stationary needle-cylinder and a revolving cam-box, wherein the relative adjustment between the needles and their embroidery threads is obtained by needle adjustment. In this figure only the more important portions of the apparatus, necessary for the understanding of the invention, are illustrated,

Figure 15 is a section on the line |l-|5 of Figure 14, showing only the cam-dial and cams for the embroidery thread-feeders,

Figure 16 is a view looking from the left of Figure 15,

Figure 1'7 shows the feeders, illustrated in Figure 16, in their positions relatively to the needles,

Figure 18 is a view similar to Figure 14 of a modified form of apparatus, and

Figure 19 illustrates a length of fabric having patterned and non-patterned areas knitted in accordance with a particular application of the invention.

Like reference numerals indicate like parts in the severalfigures of the drawings.

Referring first of all to Figures 2 to 5, the first figure shows an embroidery thread I being fed to the hook of a needle 2 by a yarn-feeder 3 which is always allocated to the same needle 2. Figure 3 illustrates the next step in which the ground-thread 4 has also just been fed to the hook, and the latch of the needle 2 in question is commencing to close by pressure against a previously formed loop 5. Figure 4 shows the complete drawing of the new loop through the old loop 5, and Figure 5 shows the position of the threads after the old loop has been knocked over and the needle has risen somewhat. The embroidery thread thus knitted is brought to the front of the fabric, as indicated in the. loops 8, l and 8 of Figure 1, which shows the fabric as viewed from the back.

Figures 6 to 9 show respectively similar steps inoperation to those illustrated in Figures 2 to 5, but in this case the embroidery thread is wrapped round the needle below the latch. This results in the embroidery thread being thrown to the back of the fabric, as shown in connection with loops 9 and In of Figure 1, but it will be seen that whether the embroidery thread is brought to the front or the back of the fabric it is interlinked with the ground-thread loops on either side so that no loose threads occur.

Figures 10 and 11 illustrate similar steps respectively to those shown in Figures 2 and 3, and Figures 12 and 13 are relatively similar to Figures 6 and 7. In this example, however, bearded needles are employed and presser-bars I or their equivalent, are employed to close the beards so as to retain any thread taken by them. The

drawing of the loops will be similar respectively to those shown in Figures 4 and 5, or Figures 8 and 9, and the appearance of the fabric will be identical with that illustrated in Figure 1.

The first example of mechanism according to the invention is shown in Figures 14 to 17 and in Figure 14 the needle-cylinder is indicated at 20. Above the cylinder and coaxial therewith is a supporting spindle 2| carrying at its lower end the embroidery thread feeder-head and actuating cams therefor. The spindle 2| is iournalled in a fixed sleeve 22 at the end of a bracket 28 extending inwardly from an upright support 24. The spindle 2| is slidably held in sleeve 22 and is capable of being raised manually to permit the elevation of the feeder-head to such a position above the cylinder 20 that ready access to the needles etc. may be had.

Attached to the lower end of the spindle 2| is a sleeve 25 through which the threads pass on their way down to the feeders, and upper and lower bearing plates 28 and 21. The lower plate is formed with radial slots in which are received the embroidery thread-feeders 23, and these slots are so formed, as shown in Figure 16, that a swinging movement of the depending yarn-guides is permitted for the purpose to be described later. Between the plates 26 and 21 the cam-plate 29 is revolubly mounted and carries on it cams 30 and 8|, to be described more fully below.

The cam-dial 29 has secured to it a driving dog 32 which is engaged by a driver lever 38 attached to the cam-box indicated at 58. Thus,

as the cam-box is rotated, the driver 33 will transmit rotation to the plate 29 by which means the cams are revolved around the axis of the cylinder 50. The driver I! may be such that it can be moved into and out from engagement with the driving dogs 32 by any preferred form of control mechanism.

Figure 15 shows clearly the forms of the cams 39 and 3| as seen in plan, whereas Figure 16 shows the profile of the active surface of the cam 3|. The cam 30 is virtually constituted by two rings affording a cam groove between them, which, for its major part, is circular and concentric with the axis of the machine, but, at I4, has two cam slopes which, by engagement with upwardly-pro- Jecting lugs formed on the embroidery threadfeeders 28 will firstly project the feeders outwardly and then, almost immediately. return them inwardly.

The feeders 28 are capable of rocking about an axis that is radial with respectto the axis of the machine so that by this rocking movement the thread-guiding eyes at their lower extremities will be swung sideways. This swinging movement is obtained by means of the cam 3| which is shown in engagement with the upwardly extending butts of the two upper feeders in Figure 16 which correspond to the middle and lefthand feeders of Figure 17. The feeders, are, therefore, rocked by the cam 3| from a position in which their dependent portions will be hanging vertically downwards, as in the right-hand feeder of Figure 17, or the bottom feeder of Figure 16, tothe inclined positions shown in connection with the other feeders of Figures 16 and 17. When the cam 3| leaves the feeder-butts they will move in succession back to the vertical position under the influence of springs (not shown). This causes a wrapping of the embroidery threads round the needles and it will be understood that the sideways swinging movements by which the feeders return to normal positions occur when the feeders have been drawn back to the inner side of the needle circle by the cam slope 34';

The means for determining whether an embroidery thread is to be formed into a loop to appear on the front of the fabric, or is to be drawn to the back thereof comprises a jacquardselector of known type comprising a platen 42, co-operating selectors 43 (preferably, one for each needle) and a perforated jacquard-band 44. The levers 43 serve to select the needles in accordance with the arrangement of the perforations in the jacquard-band as will be well understood, needle-jacks 52 being employed between the needles and the selectors 43.

In the machine illustrated inFigures 14 to 17, it is intended that all the embroidery threads shall be wrapped round the needles at a position prior to the selection of any of the latter by means of the jacquard-selector device (Fig. 2);

and that except for this selection they will be passed into and taken by the needle-hooks of the latch-needles (as illustrated in Figs. 3, 4 and 5). After this wrapping of the threads round the needles has taken place (Fig. 2), those needles at which the embroidery threads are to be drawn to the back of the fabric are raised by action of the jacquard-selectors 43 to a height at which the embroidery threads will pass below the latches (Fig. 6). Thus, when the needles are next drawn down by the stitch-cam of the ordinary needle-cam mechanism, those needles which have been thus selected will throw their embroidery threads to the back, i. e., their embroidery threads will not enter their hooks (Figs. 7, 8 and 9). The selectors are raised, for the purpose of raising the needles to the required height for passing their embroidery threads below their latches, by means of a cam indicated in chain lines at 5|. This cam is revoluble in company with the cambox of the machine. It will be apparent from this of course, that the function of the jacquard-selector or pattern mechanism of the machine illustrated is to raise selected needles a second step or to the extra height (position of Fig. 6) which causes the respective embroidery or warp thread to be placed on the needle below the needle latch (Fig. 6): all the needles may be raised to the ordinary yarn-taking height (height for taking the ground-thread 4, position of Fig. 2) by the substantially ordinary needle-cam mechanism referred to above.

In the modified construction illustrated in Figure 18, the arrangement of the embroidery thread feeder-head in relation to the needle-cylinder is similar to that described in the foregoing example. The only difference of importance in the construction shown in Figure 18 is in regard to the jacquard-selecting means. In Figure 18, below each needle, there is a sliding needle-jack 52 and associated with each sliding jack is a swinging jack 53 pivotally mounted at 54 in a fixed ring 55. Each swinging jack 53 is connected, by means of a flexible connector 58 to a jacquard-slider 51. The sliders are arranged in two banks one for each half of the machine, and each bank of sliders is controlled by a perforated jacquard-band 44 carried over a platen 42'. In this example, however, the platens 42' are arranged to be reciprocated towards and away from the sliders 51 in a direction parallel to the lengths of the sliders. When a slider 51 is raised by engagement with an imperforate portion of the jacquard-band 44 as it is carried by its platen against the ends of the sliders, as shown on the left of Figure Hi, the slider thus engaged with the jacquard-band will be moved upwardly and in so doing it will, through the medium of its associated connector 55, raise its swinging jack 53 upwardly and thus raise the corresponding needle-jack 52 and its needle to a height at which the embroidery thread, previously wrapped round the needle, will be passed below the open latch of the needle (Fig. 2).

It will be understood that in both examples of machine described above many varieties of pattern can be produced and will be determined by the arrangements of the perforations in the jacquard-bands 44. It will be further understood that the two constructions described are only given as examples of means for needle selection to determine whether the embroidery threads are to be taken into the hooks of the needles (Fig. 3) or are to be wrapped round the needles without entering the hooks on the completion of the knitting step (Figs. '7, 8 and 9).

The invention is not limited to the production of plain or non-ribbed fabric as it may be equally well applied to machines by which ribbed fabric is produced. For instance, in a dial and cylinder machine, as will be readily understood, the embroidery threads may be fed in the manner described either to the dial or cylinder needles, or to both dial and cylinder needles. It may be similarly fed to the needles of a machine employing two needle cylinders one above the other, and to the needles of either one or both cylinders.

It will be further understood that throughout the specification and claims where the absence of loose threads is mentioned, this is to apply only over those areas in which the embroidery threads are intended to be incorporated in the fabric to produce a pattern. In other words, where a section of non-patterned fabric is to be produced in continuation of a patterned section lengthwise of the fabric, the embroidery threads may be allowed to float loosely at the back of these nonpattern sections until they are taken up again into the knitting for the production of another patterned area, or until the knitting of plain or non-patterned section is otherwise completed. Similarly, also, patterning by the present invention may be applied to sections only of the fabric considered angularly around the cylinder.

In Figure 19 certain portions of the fabric are designated by reference characters A and B and are knitted with embroidery threads in the manner hereinbefore described, while other plain portions, such as C, are knitted without the embroidery threads. Between such embroidered and non-embroidered portions the embroidery threads appear as floating threads extending across the unembroidered portion.

It will be understood that it is possible to modify the method of knitting described in detail above, and the fabric produced thereby, in the following manner:

Instead of employing each thread-guide 28 to co-operate always with the same needle shogging may be introduced where desired to shift the thread-guides laterally with respect to the needles or vice versa so that the embroidery threads, instead of being fed to the original needles are, after shogging, fed to different needles on one side or the other of the original ones. Shogging may take place over two or more needles either right or left and in any sequence of shogged or non-shogged courses in accordance with the required pattern. Means for obtaining shogging movements are shown in the construction illustrated in Figures 14 to 17. For the purpose of shogging, the spindle 2| is turned about its axis by the following means:

A pin 35 extends radially from the upper end of the spindle 2| and engages a forked extremity of anendwise'movable bar 36. The latter is normally held'by a spring 31 in one direction, that is, to the right of Figure 14, and is moved against the tension of the spring by an oscillating lever 38. The upper end of the latter engages one end of the bar 36 by means of a set-screw 39 and the lower end of the lever 38 is controlled by cams 40 insertable into a pattern-drum 41. The heights of the cams 0 determine the amount of movement to'be imparted to the bar 36 andthe cams shown in Figure 14 represent i'our successive shogging movements by means of which the guides 28, on each such movement, are shogged an equal amount progressively in one direction with respect to the needles. 7

Shogging in the opposite direction will occur when the end of the lever 38 leaves the last of the four cams 40.

It will be-realized that when the shogging mechanism is employed patterning will be controlled by the arrangements of the earns 40 and the control of the drum 4| in addition to the effect of the arrangements of the perforations in the jacquardband 44. There will be an area, however, that in this machine cannot be patterned because at the time of shogging the cam rise 34 will have to be positioned in a space in the feeder-head where no embroidery feeders occur. The invention is not limited to the particular mechanism illustrated and the: example described above in detail is given only as one preferred form of mechanism.

If it is found that in shogging the threads in one direction over several needles the loops tend to burst, the trouble can be avoided by drawing a sufiicient length of thread to prevent bursting.

l. A method of knitting a Wale-thread in addition to a continuously laid ground-thread into the iabric'on each course, which consists in first wrapping the Wale-thread round the needle and subsequentlyrelatively adjusting the position of the thread on theneedle to determine whether it is to be knitted by the heck of the needle or is alternatively to be cast ofi without being drawn into a loop by the needle hook.

2. A method of knitting a Wale-thread in addition to a continuously laid ground-thread into the fabric so that on each course the thread is either knitted by the hook of the needle or is wrapped round the needle without entering the hook thereof, in which method the Wale-thread is first wrapped round the needle in a position at which it would normally enter the hook, and subsequently the needle is subjected to additional control to determine whether the thread is to be knitted by the hook or whether the needle is to be displaced so as to pass the thread to a position at which it will be cast ofl. without being drawn into a loop by the hook.

3. A method of knitting a Wale-thread in addition to a continuously laid ground-thread into the fabric with the aid latch needles so that on each course the thread is either knitted by the hook of the needle or is wrapped round the needle without entering the hook thereof, in which method the Wale-thread is first wrapped round each needle and above the latch thereof, and subsequently the needle is subjected to additional control to determine whether the thread is to be knitted by the hook, or, alternatively, whether it is tobe raised so that the thread is cleared below the opened latch.

4. For a circular knitting machine knitting a, ground thread-and having means for causing the loops to be cast 01! the needles, patterning mechanism having in combination a plurality 01 embroidery thread-guides providing respective needles with an embroidery thread wrapped around the same in individual embroidered 5 courses, and means acting selectively on the needles receiving embroidery threads to cause the embroidery threads 01' some of the embroiderythread-receiving needles to be cast of! on the next pass of a means for causing the loops to 10 be cast off the needles, the remainder of the needles served by said embroidery thread-guides holding their embroidery threads in their books at said pass oi said means.

5. For a circular knitting machine knitting a ground thread and having a needle lowering stitch cam, patterning mechanism having in combination a plurality oi embroidery threadguides providing respective needles with an embroidery thread wrapped around the same in individual embroidered courses, and means for adjusting the height of a selected lot 01' the needles receiving embroidery threads, relatively to the respective thread-guides, to cause the embroidery threads of some 0! the needles to be cast oif on the next pass 01' a stitch cam, the remainder oi the needles served by said embroidery thread-guides holding their embroidery threads in their hooks at said pass of a stitch cam.

6. The subject matter of claim 5, characterized by the fact that the needles are latch needles, and by the tact that the needles left at the greatest height by said means for adjusting the height 01' the needles, carry their embroidery threads below their latches.

7. For a circular knitting machine having a needle lowering stitch cam, patterning mechanism oi the type described comprising in comhination a plurality of embroidery thread-guides 0 to serve different needles and so arranged that when moved relatively to the needles their threads are placed around the respective nee dles, actuating means which, on every embroidered course, moves each thread-guide through a complete feeding movement, and selecting means for adjusting the height of selected needles relatively to the respective threadguides to cause the embroidery thread for any needle thus selected to be cast-of! on the next M pass oi a stitch earn, the remaining needles served by said embroidery thread-guides holding their embroidery threads within their hooks at said pass of said stitch cam.

8. For a circular knitting machine employing latch needles and having a needle lowering stitch cam, patterning mechanism of the type described, comprising in combination a plurality of embroidery thread-guides to serve diflerent needles and so arranged that when moved rela-. tively to the needles their threads are placed around the respective needles, actuating means which, on every embroidered course, moves each thread-guide througha complete feeding movement, and selecting means for adjusting the height of selected needles relatively to the re-' spective thread-guide to cause the embroidery thread for any needle thus selected to be cast-oft on the next pass oi a stitch cam, the remaining needles served by said embroidery thread-guides holding their embroidery threads within their hooks at said pass of said stitch cam.

9. For a circular knitting machine, having means to cast-ofl completed loops from the needles, patterning mechanism of the type described comprising in combination a plurality oi! embroidery thread-guides, actuating means which, on every embroidered course moves each threadguide through a complete feeding movement, and selecting means for adjusting the height to which the needles are moved relatively to their thread-guides, whereby the embroidery threads may be cast-off from some of the needles on the next pass of a cast-off means and drawn into ioops by other of said needles on the same pass of said cast-off means.

10. For a circular knitting machine having a plurality of needles and a needle-lowering stitchcam, patterning mechanism comprising in combination a plurality of embroidery thread guides to serve diiierent needles and so arranged that when moved relatively to the. needles their threads are placed around the respective needles, actuating means for said thread-guides and selecting means for adjusting the height of a selected needle relatively to its thread guide to cause the embroidery thread for any needle thus selected to be Wrapped, when desired, round the needle at a point so low thereon prior to the lowering of that needle by the stitch-cam that the embroidery thread is cast-off from the needle by said lowering of the needle.

11. For a circular knitting machine employing latch-needles and having a needle-lowering stitch-cam, patterning mechanism comprising in combination a plurality of embroidery threadguides to serve different needles and so arranged that when moved relatively to the needles their threads are placed around the respective needies, actuating means for said thread-guides, and selecting means for adjusting the height of a selected needle relatively to its thread-guide to cause the embroidery thread for any needle thus selected to be located, when desired, around the needle below the opened latch thereof prior to the lowering of that needle by the stitchcam, the remaining needles served by said embroidery thread-guides having, when lowered by the stitch cam, their embroidery threads within their hooks. i

12. Patterning mechanism of the type described comprising in combination a plurality of thread-guides, one for each embroidery thread to be used, thread-guide actuating means which, on every course, moves each thread-guide through a complete feeding movement, and selecting means for adjusting the height to which the needles are moved relatively to their threadguides whereby the embroidery thread may be cast-ofi' from some of the needles on the pass of a cast-oil means and drawn into loops by other of said needles on the same pass of said cast-off means.

EDWIN WlLDT. HENRY HAROLD HOLMES. 

